Experts in apostilles, police clearances and South African documentation.

Police Clearance Certificate (SAPS)

A sample of the header of a South African Police Service Police Clearance.

How to get a SAPS Police Clearance for South Africa

Getting a police clearance certificate when you need to use it for work or study abroad can be a time-consuming process, but if you know what the process entails and how to go about it, it makes things much easier to understand why you need to use a professional legal firm. The information on this page will help you better understand what a police clearance certificate is and how you can go about asking us to get your SAPS Police Clearance done.

Our services are not hampered by any “new application process at SAPS”. If you want to apply for a SAPS Police Clearance Certificates from SA or abroad, and receive the document in between 4 and 15 working days (excluding courier), please see our pricing here.

Need the official SAPS Police Clearance South Africa application form? Download it here.

What is a SAPS Police Clearance Certificate for South Africa?

A SAPS Police Clearance South Africa is a certificate that is issued after a background check has been conducted to enumerate any criminal records that he or she might have. The SAPS Criminal Record Centre, located in Pretoria, is where South Africans get their clearance certificates processed. You can learn more about the SAPS Police Clearance process by visiting their website.

How to apply for SAPS Police Clearance South Africa

In order to apply for a SAPS Police Clearance certificate, you will need to supply a set of complete fingerprints as well as proof of your identity, along with a completed application form. On the fingerprint form, you full names and surname, identity number, date of birth and place of birth must also be recorded. Usually when you apply in South Africa, a police officer or SAPS employee will assist you in taking your fingerprints. However, you can actually have your fingerprints taken anywhere and your form stamped.

Should you wish to arrange your police clearance certificate through us, you can have the SAPS Police Clearance 91a (application form) fingerprinted at your nearest police station or fingerprinting company, after which we will handle your documents directly with the Pretoria Criminal Records Centre. You may also choose to have your document/s returned by in-person collection or via local or international courier.

The stamp of the South African Police Service. Note the date on the stamp.

What is the timeframe for a SAPS Police Clearance?

There is an abundance of information online that tells you that you can do the application on your, but applying in person may see your clearance certificate take up to 4-6 weeks (if in SA) and 6 months (if abroad) to get processed. According to the Criminal Records Centre, their processing times vary from the day on which the application was submitted, which is very confusing.

apostil.co.za can assist you in getting your SAPS Police Clearance in between 5 and 30 working days of applying (excluding courier time). We can also have it apostilled quickly. See our pricing and contact us now.

Further reading:

Can I Get My Police Record Expunged?

If you have a criminal record, you can apply to get your criminal record expunged at the Department of Justice, under the South African Expungement of a Criminal Record in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act 1997 (Act 51 of 1997). If your application for expungement is approved, your criminal record will be removed from the national criminal register.

You may apply to get your criminal record expunged if: 1. Ten years have passed since the date of the conviction of your offence. 2. You received a sentence of periodical imprisonment or correctional supervision as opposed to a direct prison sentence. 3. During the ten years since your conviction, you have not been convicted and imprisoned (without the option of a fine), for any other offence. 4. You were sentenced for conviction of lesser serious crimes or politically motivated crimes. 5. You were convicted of an offence based on race. 6. You were convicted of an offence which would not be regarded as an offence in an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality, and freedom under the democratic constitutional dispensation.

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